1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the preparation of alloys comprising titanium and aluminum, and also relates to the preparation of alloys comprising titanium, aluminum and at least one of the following metals: vanadium, molybdenum, zirconium, chromium, niobium, tantalum and iron.
The invention more especially relates to the preparation of alloys based on titanium and aluminum by coreduction in the presence of a reactive flux.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known to this art, i.e., from U.S. Pat. No. 1,437,984, to prepare pure metals, in particular zirconium, by the reduction of potassium fluozirconate with aluminum.
According to such process, a less than stoichiometric amount of the reducing metal is employed, which results in pure zirconium, i.e., free of the reducing metal. The reduction reaction is initiated by high frequency heating at a temperature between 600.degree. C. and 700.degree. C., a temperature at which the products of reaction, aluminum fluoride, potassium fluoride and residual potassium fluozirconate, do not evaporate. In a second stage, the reaction mass is heated to a temperature in excess of 1000.degree. C., which gives rise to the evaporation of the reaction products, together with the excess of potassium fluozirconate. This process, however, displays the disadvantage in that it results in a significant loss of potassium fluozirconate by evaporation. Furthermore, the separation of the reaction products is very difficult.